Railroad-tie



(No Model.)

0.F. KREUZ.

. RAILROAD TIE. 4 No. 263,919. PatentedSept. 5, 1882.

Mr/iwf@ UNIT-ED STATES bPATENT OFFICE.

CONRAD F. KREUZ, OF MILWAUKEE, ASSIGNOR OF ON E-HALF lO JEROME D.CLARKE, OF MADISON, WISCONSIN.

RAI LROAD-Tl E.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters 1Patent No. 263,919, datedSeptember 5, 1882.

' Application filed May 11, 1882. (No model.)

.To all whom it may concern Be it known thatl, CONRAD F. KREUZ, ofMilwaukee, in the county ot Milwaukee, and in the State of Wisconsin,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railroad-Ties; andI do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof.

My invention Vrelates to Arailroad-ties, and is in part an improvementon the device patented to me December 20, 1881, and numbered 251,251, aswill be more fully set forth hereinafter.

In the drawings, Figure l represents in perspective one form of myimproved tie with a special key. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal verticalsection of the same. Figs. 3 and 4 are detail views of the key and lock,and Fig. 5 represents another form of my tie without the described key.

In my patent above named Ifound it necessary to employ a system of threeties,each of the same general description, yet differing more or less indetail, and two of which were adapted tobeused alternately throughoutthe 2 5 length of a pair of rails, while the third tie was to be usedwhenever a second pair of rails were to be laid in continuation of thepreced- 1n g p'air. In my present invention, however, all this is muchsimplified, and I may use indiscriminately the form of tie shown in Fig.l or the form shown in Fig. 5,'though both may be used to good effect,and wherethis is done the form shown in Fig. 1 with the extra key isbest adapted for the purpose of uniting the ends of two pairs of rails,while the other form of tie, Fig. 5,.may be used for the intermediateties. Again, when the grade of the road is very steep it may bedesirable to employ the form of tie with the key, whereas onperfectlylevel road-beds the form 'shown in Fig. 5 will answersatisfactorily.

A represents the body of thetie, and this is formed of H bars or beamsof iron, having a central web andupper and lower flanges. The upper flanges are c ut or punched through transversely to remove the superfluousiron at the center a, and alsoou each side of this central cut-away, asshow .n at b b, to receive the rails B B and at c c to receive the locksC C. 5o These locks C are either plain on the side or edge farthest fromthe rail, as shown in Fig. 5, or provided at that point with a centraldovetail groove, d, extending from top to bottom, as shown in Fig. 4, toreceive the central dovetail projection, d', on a key, D, Fig. 3,according to the grade of the road or the kind of service required, asalready explained.

E E represent cushions interposed between the central web of thetie-body and the bottom `of the rails. Their function is to prevent jar-6 ring and to deaden sound, and also to prevent the pounding of thesurface of the rails by the car-wheels when the ground is frozen. -Thesecushions are to be made of either wood, rubber, felt, leather, paper, ora mixture of any of these, or any similar composition which possessesthe qualities of ilexibility, durability, and elasticity.

I have designated by the letters a a the extreme ends ofthe side flangesof mytic above 7o the central web, and extending from each end of thetie to the outer side of each rail. Should I desire in any event toadopt the system of alternation that Idescribed in my former patenthereinbefore named, it would only be nec- 7 5 essary to remove (bypunching or cutting in precisely the same Way, and, it' desired., at thesame operation, in which the spaces c b c are formed) these endportions, c a', of my upper flanges, and then the rail would serve as aneX- 8o act substitute for the ra'il shown in Fig. 2 of my said PatentNo. 251,251, to be alternated with my present complete rail. In Fig. 2of my present case I have shown by the wholly white portions (marked aa) just' what would thus 85 be removed, as a portion of thelanges abovethe web should be retained in order to secure the cushions E againstlateral displacement.

My ties can be made very quickly and cheaply from the H-iron bars orbeams, as all portions 9o of the upper flanges which are to be cut awaycan be removed at a single punching operation thus leaving the body ofmy tie complete, and the lower flanges, beingleftintegral, will firm] ygrasp the earth and lessen the danger of dis- 9 5 placement of the tiewhen once lai Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new,and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l.v A railroad-tie made from a bar of H iron, roo

the upper anges of which are punched through or out away, as shown at bo, in combination with the rails B and locks G, as set forth.

2. A railroad-tie made from a bar of H -iron, the upper Han ges of whichare punched through or cut away, as shown at b c, in combination withthe rails B, locks C, and keys D, as set forth.

3. A railroad-tie made from a bar of H-iron, the upper an ges of whichare punched through or out away, as shown at b o, in combination withthe rails B, looks C, keys D, and cushions E, as set forth.

4. In railroad-ties, the combination of the looks G, having centraldovetail groove, d, eX- 15 tending from top to bottom, with the keys D,havin gcentral dovetail projeetions,d as shown and described, and forthe purpose set forth..

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand onthis 10th day of zo April, 1882, in the presence of two witnesses.

CONRAD F. KREUZ.

Witnesses HENRY HARNDEN, F. M. STEWART.

